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Disparities in Food Access and in Opportunities for Physical Activity
This article discusses the causes for the rising tide of preventable chronic disease, not only in Massachusetts but across the country. It also highlights some of the key factors that have produced this change and the parts of the population that are often more affected.
Myths and Facts about Complementary and Alternative Medicine
The world of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) may seem mystifying to funders. In this era of health reform – with a renewed emphasis on prevention and wellness – it may be the perfect time for philanthropy to explore its opportunities.
Creating Common Ground: Working Together for Food Systems Change
A growing number of segments of the philanthropic community are paying attention to the food system and its interconnectedness with other major health, environmental, justice, and community issues.
Back to Basics: Promoting Healthy School Food
With support from the Colorado Health Foundation, GIH convened the strategy session and site visit Back to Basics: Promoting Healthy School Food. This brief paper highlights some key issues that set the stage for the meeting and outlines main aspects of the discussion.
Ingredients for a Healthy School Lunch Movement
From a comfortable distance, the solution to the childhood obesity problem sounds deceptively easy: children need to move more and eat healthier foods. Yet, as you examine the many causes of childhood obesity, the simple solution is not quite as simple as it sounds. Encouraging children to adopt healthy habits is challenging because unhealthy eating and sedentary lifestyles are engrained in our culture.
Back to the Beginning: Obesity Prevention in Early Childhood
Recent efforts in the field of child obesity prevention have placed emphasis on the school-age population, and with good reason. Schools present a unique opportunity to reach large groups of children on a regular basis with healthy foods and physical activity. However, about 10 percent of children come to kindergarten already obese, indicating that more attention needs to focus on the period of life before school.
The Importance (and Challenge) of Reaching Obese Adults
Over the past year, adult obesity rates continued to rise in the United States, resulting in an urgent need to lower rates. But much of what got us here will take years of extensive effort to reverse.
Pathways to Community Health: Funders Supporting Biking and Walking Trails to Promote Physical Activity
Currently, more than half of U.S. adults do not engage in enough physical activity to provide health benefits, and one in four is not active at all during leisure time. Walking, riding bikes, and playing outside are not options when neighborhoods and parks are unsafe or if there are no sidewalks or bike trails.
Innovations in the Prevention and Treatment of Diabetes
One of the most deadly and disabling consequences of America’s obesity epidemic is the precipitous increase of individuals suffering from diabetes. According to estimates by the American Diabetes Association (ADA), approximately 4,110 people are diagnosed with diabetes each day, with 1.5 million new cases diagnosed in 2005. The ADA predicts that one in three Americans born in 2000 will develop diabetes during their lifetime.
Connect With Funder Peers on Healthy Eating and Active Living
Interested in exchanging strategies, information, and questions with your funder peers? Sign up for GIH E-Forums.
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